Pages

Tuesday, 7 January 2014

Two Minutes With... Alfreton Town

Alfreton were the first team to visit The Hive in 2014,
as Barnet were looking to pick up their first points of the year. Reds fan
James (@I_amjimcrooks) made the trip to North
London and gives his thoughts in the latest instalment.

Saturday
4th January 2014
Barnet v Alfreton Town
9th3rd

Previous game:Luton Town 2-1 Barnet
Alfreton Town 1-0 Wrexham

Pre-match

How
did you get to the game?

I travelled separately from the rest of the Alfreton
support. Coming to the ground on the tube, I got my first sight of The Hive on
the approach to Canons Park Station.

What
did you make of The Hive?

Initial impressions were of a small but tidy looking ground.

I know there had been a lot of interest in this
fixture amongst Alfreton fans, and a second bus had been filled for the long
trip to Harrow.

I arrived before the rest of the Alfreton faithful and
decided to grab a coffee and watch the last 15 minutes of the Blackburn v Man
City FA Cup tie. The facilities, whilst impressive, left me with little
impression that I was at Barnet. I get the feeling that the club hasn't fully
settled in to its new home.

Match

What
did you make of the game?

It was a tight affair, with the better of the chances
undoubtedly going to Barnet and for that I would say they deserved their win.
Alfreton missed the work rate and aerial ability of Paul Clayton who was
missing through illness.

The goal that decided the game was worthy of winning any
game.

The away support was vocal throughout, with the home fans
finding their voice in the last 20 minutes.

Praise must go to the ground staff: the pitch looked
excellent despite the recent weather.

Who
(from either side) impressed you?

The midfield of Barnet looked good on the ball with
plenty of slick passing to try and drag the Alfreton defence out of position.
David Stephens was awarded the man of the match and I would say this was fair
enough; however, Alfreton did play to his strengths.

Who
(from either side) could have done better?

John Akinde is a frustrating player for me, as he looks
dangerous on the ball and can at times be un-playable but doesn't have the work
rate needed to play as a lone striker.

Post-match

Was
the score line a fair reflection on the game?

There wasn’t much between the sides, but Barnet deserved
the points for creating more clear-cut chances. They could have won by a bigger
margin in the end too.

Who
do you play next and how do you think you’ll do?

We next play on Tuesday night, away at Lincoln City. This
is as close as we get to a local derby with Mansfield Town now in League Two.
Sincil Bank has been a happy hunting ground for Alfreton since their promotion
into the Conference, so I'm quietly confident of a positive result there.

Ratings

Price
of match day ticket

7/10 – I paid £17 which is expensive, but is not out of
line with other prices at this level. Some fans paid £20 to sit down however
and this caused some confusion: seated supporters entered through the same
turnstile as standing, we were unsure why you would pay extra when no one was
checking.

Purchases
made at the ground

9/10 – Nice cup of coffee at a decent price, friendly
catering staff. Good choice of beer in the bar, although I wasn't drinking so
can't comment on quality.

View

8/10 – Nice, new terraced stand for away fans.

Quality
of football

7/10 – Quite a scrappy game due to the conditions. Both
sides looked good when getting the ball down and passing. Barnet had that bit
more quality.

Overall
experience

8/10 – Decent game of football played in poor conditions
but on a surprisingly good surface. A fair result with Barnet taking the three
points. I believe both sides will be looking at a play-off place at the end of
the season.